The PDECat has announced this Tuesday that it is activating the machinery to run in the general elections on July 23 in the four Catalan constituencies. Until now, the formation had four deputies in the Congress of Deputies as a result of the divorce with JxCat in the summer of 2020, with Ferran Bel as the visible head.
The formation attended the municipal elections last Sunday in coalition with the municipalist brand, in some cases with a convergent past, Ara Catalunya, established above all in the province of Tarragona, in places like Reus. On the other hand, in Barcelona the party supported the candidacy of Xavier Trias and included Joana Ortega in sixth position on the list.
In any case, the result of the post-convergent formation was not something to write home about, despite the triumphant message that the party launched yesterday in a first assessment. “It was not easy to face these municipal elections, but the commitment to territorial implantation through the Ara Pacte Local brand has been a success”, said the deputy of Congress and secretary of organization of the formation, GenÃs Boadella, who understands that “the citizenship has supported” his bid for “purely municipal candidacies.
In total they achieved 187 councillors, 1.84% of the votes in all of Catalonia (55,444). In the 2021 parliamentary elections, with former minister Àngels Chacón as a candidate, the party led by David Bonvehà remained as an extra-parliamentary force and garnered 77,059 supports, 2.72% of the total.
Taking these elements into account, at yesterday’s management meeting there was some debate about what should be the path to follow, whether that of Barcelona, ​​of confluence with Junts, or that of attending alone. Boadella also made a positive assessment of Trias’ candidacy. In any case, sources from the post-convergent party point out that it is not the same for Jaume Giró to present himself for Junts, with a determined spirit, than for MÃriam Nogueras to do so and that the leitmotif of the campaign is only the conflict.
In Junts, aware that the PDECat candidacy can take away votes even if they do not obtain representation, as happened in the last regional elections or in cities like Manresa and Vic in these last elections, there are those who advocate the entente again. In fact, yesterday Jordi Turull launched the proposal for a joint candidacy with all the pro-sovereignty forces and also extended his hand to those of BonvehÃ.
For the elections of 23-J, the party wants to exhibit achievements in the Lower House, where they highlight that they have presented 3,000 parliamentary initiatives and more than 2,000 amendments to projects and bills. In a special way, in a statement, the formation highlights “milestones” such as the modification of the Penal Code to toughen prison sentences in cases of multiple recidivism of thefts, freezing the increase in vehicle registration tax for six months, the authorization of the permit of burning vegetable waste for farmers, the bill to modify the patronage law, that third sector entities could also benefit from European funds, the free of charge of all bus lines concessionary by the State during 2023 and Multiple investments for municipalities and entities throughout the Catalan territory.
“The political project of the PDECat is more current and necessary than ever,” concludes the statement, in which they assure that they will attend the general elections “to defend rigor, sanity and useful politics in the defense of the interests of Catalonia in the General cuts”.